How to say it
AI · den
/ˈeɪ.dən/
Masculine
Aiden
Little fire
What it means
Anglicized Irish Aodhán, diminutive of Aodh ('fire'). Aodh was the name of a Celtic sun god; Aidan of Lindisfarne was the 7th-century Irish missionary who Christianized Northumbria.
Aiden is one of several spellings of the anglicized Irish Aodhán, a diminutive of Aodh ('fire'). Aodh was the name of a sun god in Celtic religion. Saint Aidan of Lindisfarne (d. 651) was an Irish monk who established the monastery on Lindisfarne and Christianized much of Northumbria; he's a major figure in early English church history. The name lay dormant in English for centuries and exploded in the late 1990s and 2000s, spawning a whole rhyming-name wave (Aiden, Brayden, Jayden, Cayden). It peaked at #9 in 2010 and is now sliding gently. Aid and Aidie are uncommon shorts.
Popularity over time
peaked at #9 in 2010, currently #62 in 2025.
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, names given to at least 5 babies in a year, 1880–present. See where the names are moving
Heads-up notes
- Spelling
Aiden, Aidan, Ayden, and Aiyden all circulate. Aidan is the original Irish; Aiden is the dominant US spelling since the 2000s. The variants peaked together and are now sliding together.
Who's worn it
Historical figures, characters, and public faces who share the name. The cultural surface, for whatever weight you want to give it.
- Saint Aidan of Lindisfarne 7th-century Irish missionary who Christianized Northumbria
Spelling variants
- Aidan
- Ayden
- Aiyden
- Aodhán
Names with the same feeling
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